Sharjah: While beggars swarm into the UAE during Ramadan and other Islamic occasions such as Eid, the phenomenon is now being reported ahead of Christian occasions like Christmas. Residents have complained that a group of Filipinos are going from door to door in Sharjah, seeking money for a church.
"The group members, who claimed to be missionaries from the Philippines, are asking for donation for their church," said a resident in Sharjah.
Residents said this is a new trend in begging during special occasions. Earlier this happened only during Ramadan and Eid.
A number of residents across the UAE said they were annoyed as the Filipino group is also preaching and asking for donations using charity solicitation letters .
In a letter written in English, the group claimed they were missionaries helping orphanages to feed, educate and provide children with clothes.
Mira, a Lebanese resident of Sharjah, said three Filipino men, who were well dressed and holding a guitar, knocked on her door in the Al Majaz area last Wednesday to tell her about Christianity, the church and about charity
"The men said that they were preachers and that as Christmas was drawing closer, they were collecting donation for the church," she said.
Similar experience
"It was annoying. They handed me a letter asking for money and they invited me to their church. They said the phone number was written in the letter," she said.
Riyasa, another woman from Sri Lanka, had a similar experience in Ajman. She said the men who knocked on her door at the corniche area asked for donations to help orphans.
"In the letter which they gave me, they said they were group of missionaries driven by the "love of God" to serve the community," she said.
She said if it was legitimate charity solicitation, they should not knock at residents' doors spreading their missionary beliefs among the people in the UAE. "It looks like another begging racket that we usually see during Ramadan," she said.
Gulf News obtained a copy of the letter and called the number on it, but no one answered the call.
Jail term
Martia, a Filipina in Dubai, said she knows about this group in the Philippines.
"The United Christian Mission Luzon Chapter had been operating for more than four years, but its "preachers" become visible only as Christmas draws near," she said.
Gulf News met one of the men from the group in Ajman. He confirmed they were a group of missionaries. "We are helping orphans, feeding and educating them," he said, identifying himself as Brother Thomas.
Brigadier Ali Abdullah Alwan, chief of Ajman Police, said the UAE allows freedom of religion in accordance with established customs and the government respects this right in practice.
He, however, said propagating religion is not allowed here and is liable to be punished with five to ten years in jail. He also said beggars face deportation and a life ban from the country.
